Walker: Budget Holdup Halts Reciprocity Payments
MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) -- Wisconsin's governor is bringing Minnesota into the fight to balance his state's budget. Gov. Scott Walker brought up the point that Wisconsin owes Minnesota a lot of money, and he'd like to pay it back.
The state owes tens of millions of dollars, an amount that was due back in December, but Wisconsin has been putting off paying it out up to now.
The reciprocity agreement is one Minnesota used to have with Wisconsin. It involved people who live in one state and work and pay taxes in another.
Walker is touring the state Wednesday, trying to sell his budget plan to the people of Wisconsin. His plan calls for big cuts to schools and local governments, more than $1 billion.
Walker says cities and counties will have to make adjustments to employee benefits to help absorb the cuts.
The state of Wisconsin is facing a $3.5 billion budget deficit. The latest projections put Minnesota's budget in the red to the tune of about $5 billion.
On Wednesday morning, Walker slammed the previous administration for not paying the money owed to Minnesota.
"I talked to Governor Dayton about a month, a month and a half ago in Minnesota. My predecessor failed to make the $58 million payment for tax reciprocity we owe that's outstanding," said Walker. "Those bills are due and every day we fail to make them, they earn interest on the payments outstanding."
That interest is actually growing by thousands of dollars a day.
Walker is warning that if the Democratic Senators who have been on the lam don't return to vote on this budget bill, there will be layoffs.
